The blocked connections occurred when Cox subscribers used BitTorrent to download or upload files, according to the results of the survey. Cox has acknowledged a practice called "protocol filtering," but says that's not the equivalent of creating different standards for handling content traveling across its networks.

The survey results will provide another log for the fire started by Net neutrality activists pushing for rules that would prohibit ISPs from enacting different standards for different types of content. The AP said the Federal Communications Commission would look into the matter "expeditiously."